By Gráinne Ní Aodha and Cillian Sherlock, PA
Three men arrested in connection with an investigation into €160 million of cocaine seized on a bulk cargo ship off the coast of Ireland are to appear in court on Tuesday.
The men are expected to appear at Mallow District Court in Cork at 10:30am on Tuesday.
Three other men have already appeared at Wexford District Court this week in relation to the seizure.
Another man remains in custody, gardaí confirmed on Monday, while another man has been released without charge.
A total of 2,253kg of cocaine was found on the MV Matthew cargo ship after members of the Irish Army Ranger Wing captured the vessel off the Co Cork coast by abseiling from a helicopter last week.
An Garda Siochana said the seizure was the largest in the history of the state.
Police believe the cocaine, seized after the dramatic military operation at sea, was destined for distribution beyond Ireland, potentially into the UK and continental Europe.
A fishing trawler that grounded off the coast of Co Wexford late on Sunday was also being monitored as part of the operation, amid suspicions it was en route to rendezvous with the cargo ship.
It comes as TD Cathal Berry, a former deputy commander of the Army Ranger Wing, told BreakingNews.ie: "It could have gone horribly wrong with the lack of backup. Conducting that mission with one helicopter was operating on the edge, beyond the frontier of normal operations."
Mr Berry pointed out that the helicopter was initially in Athlone on a medical operation. "When the helicopter was taken from Athlone, you'd wonder how many medical calls were unanswered? That's a vital service."
"One helicopter for two taskings... a medical tasking in Athlone, and the counter-narcotics tasking in Cork. That is further evidence of how poorly resourced the Defences Forces have been, even in the last two years since Russia invaded Ukraine, it has been continuing to go into free-fall."
He said a mechanical fault, even as small as a warning light on the helicopter, would have forced the Defence Forces to abort the operation.
